My wife and I arrived at my in-laws today at the end of a 3 day couple's retreat away from the kids (3yr8m boy and 1yr10m boy). We were both very excited to see the kids again and wondered if they missed us at all.
My wife was ahead of me as my older son appeared. She crouched down to the ground with her arms wide open to greet him with a big hug, but he saw me behind and ran around her to hug me. The second didn't see me and ran to his mom immediately, then after hugging momentarily he noticed me, extricated himself from his mom, and ran to me. Both boys wanted to be in daddy's arms for the next 10 minutes.
My wife was heartbroken. Didn't her boys miss her at all? Do they even care about her? Would they be just as happy if she didn't even exist? These are the thoughts running through her head all day.
My wife is a great mom. She is a stay at home mother, she does crafts and plays with the kids all day. She does have to discipline as well (no hitting, but she does raise her voice semi-regularly). Is there some way to help my boys be as excited about their mom as they are about me? Does their behavior reflect on their mother's kindness and parenting ability in any way?